Disclaimer: I do not own the Black Donnelly's.

The Rage

"Anybody can become angry, that is easy; but to be angry with the right person, and to the right degree, and at the right time, and for the right purpose, and in the right way, that is not within everybody's power, that is not easy."

Growing up in the neighborhood, there were two people that struck terror in the hearts of all the children. The first was Dokey, for obvious reasons, but the second was Mr. Riley. With the exception of his own daughter, Mr. Riley detested all the neighborhood youth with a fervent passion that bordered on sadistic. Children were not allowed in the diner after the hours of three o clock without a parent present, and those unfortunate enough to be caught loitering out front were quickly dispatched from the premises with the hose he used to wash down the sidewalk.

Every weekday, promptly at 2:50 the school bells would ring, signaling the end of tests and homework for all children in the area. Those same bells would also give Mr. Riley his cue to set up his lawn chair on the sidewalk Thus, when school let out, all the children knew that when they came onto Addison Ave they were to cross the street, keep their heads down, and not make any sudden movements, because "Mean Ol' Riley" would assuredly be seated outside, hose in hand. It embarrassed Jenny to no end, but he ignored his daughter's indignant pleas. The children here were delinquents in training, and if he didn't keep a watchful eye, they would overrun the neighborhood with candy wrappers, toys, and other such nonsense.

Though consumed with determined scorn, Mr. Riley was a fair man and he generally divvied his hate equally amongst all the neighborhood children, making his disdain for all of them abundantly clear. However, Jenny's father held a special spot of resentment for four specific children, the Donnelly brothers. Aside from the fact that he had his own grudge against Bobby, Mr. Riley has had, and maintained a personal gripe against Tommy Donnelly since the young man was ten years old. The reason being that no matter how hard he tried, or how many other children he attempted to tolerate, he simply could not keep his Jenny away from that boy.

Obviously as a father, he didn't want to see his only daughter with any boy, and if he had his way he would have mailed Jenny of to a convent the moment she turned 13. Realistically, he knew that he couldn't really do that (postage fees would simply be ridiculous), but Mr. Riley would willingly bring on any other suitor as long as it wasn't the son of that rat bastard Bobby Donnelly.

"Bobby Donnelly, the Guardian of the neighborhood my ass…" Was on of his favorite lines whenever somebody would come into the diner praising the fallen Donnelly because it was the biggest load of crap he had ever heard. Nobody knew the sins that Bobby Donnelly committed in order to attain his so called "sainthood", or the skeletons held in his closet.

Amidst the chaos and questions that surrounded his murder, everybody seemed to forget that above all else, Bobby Donnelly was a gangster who associated with other gangsters, and thus led a gangster's lifestyle. When he died, everybody seemed to forget the moments when Bobby went out to collect protection money from the shops. No one was there when Mr. Riley put his foot down in refusal, and Bobby Donnelly subsequently put his foot down all over Mr. Riley's skull. Nobody said a word when people disappeared, or someone was seen the next morning with a few extra bruises on their face. Mr. Riley saw it though, and he always remembered it. He remembered every bruise and scar that Bobby Donnelly ever gave him, and would hold it against him even after the day he died.

As far as he was concerned, the Bobby Donnelly that everybody knew was a lie. He knew the truth, and merely counted the days until all of Bobby's misdeeds finally caught up with him. In fact, on the day of the funeral Jenny had asked to go and he told her no (she went anyway), he closed up the shop early, went up to his room and held a quiet celebration,

'Ding Dong the Donnelly is dead, the Donnelly is dead, the Donnelly is dead!' Was a catchy little tune he had sang to himself that day, and it stayed in his mind long into the evening.

In the back of his head, Mr. Riley knew that regardless of his less than pleasant feelings for the man that Bobby Donnelly did die tragically and was leaving behind a family. However, Mr. Riley was also a practical person and a die hard Irishman who believed in hard work, keeping his nose clean, and minding his own business. He had been extended an offer to work with Bobby, Huey, and that Italian, but he knew what became of people who associated with Italians, and hastily turned it down. That diner was all he owned in the world, and he wanted nothing to do with anything that would jeopardize that. The simple fact that Bobby Donnelly and the rest of his little group wanted a piece of that burned him to no end. It was something he simply could not over look, and he never forgave Bobby for it. Mr. Riley hated Bobby Donnelly for a lot of things not including the diner, and subsequently hated Tommy Donnelly for most of those things even though those things occurred before Tommy was even born.

The irony of the entire situation was that, although Mr. Riley detested Bobby and Tommy with every fiber of his being, he had always held a soft spot in his heart for Helen. It was this soft spot, however, that made him hate Bobby Donnelly even more. He hated Bobby for putting his hands on him, and he also hated Bobby for trying to extort the Diner. However, more than all of that, he hated Bobby for leaving Helen as a widow. This was also his reason for hating Tommy, and why he always tried his best to keep the boy away from his daughter.

Tommy was so much like his father it was ridiculous and it was only a matter of time before he met the same fate. Mr. Riley saw the pain, devastation, and sheer loneliness that Helen wore on her face after Bobby passed away, and he did not want Jenny to have any part of it. So, as any father would, he did his best to protect his daughter. Even if it caused her to hate him, he didn't care. All he wanted was for Jenny to be happy, and he knew in his heart that even if Tommy meant well, it would inevitably lead to tragedy and he simply could not allow that, not as long as he still lived and breathed.

However, as admirable as Mr. Riley's stance was, he should have known that it would always be Jenny Riley's fate to forever lament a Donnelly.

Authors Note:

I always found Mr. Riley to be an interesting character, because he is so much like the typical cantankerous old man who is just angry and belligerent for no good reason.

Well i decided to give him a reason, and this is what came out.

Despite the fact that we all like Bobby Donnelly, it cannot be denied that he was a gangster, who was involved in gangster activities. And yes, his conscience may have caught up with him when it came to the neighborhood, but i refuse to believe that he wasnt involved in some really shady shit.

Besides, for every person that likes you, there is always 2 or 3 people who hate you.